How to Clean your Home

Whether you have a house or an apartment, you probably found this article while searching for how to clean your home. Not only am I going to tell you how to clean your home, but also how to clean your home quickly and, in 20 minutes to be exact.

This article is especially recommended for folks with their first apartment or dorm, but can be helpful for anyone looking for a quick home cleaning routine. House cleaning shouldn’t be something to dwell about - it should be something that can be completed quickly and timely so you can get on with the rest of your life! That said, having a clean home is extremely important when it comes to maturity and self growth. How can you conquer the world if you have not yet been able to conquer your apartment?

How to Clean Your Home Every DayExpect to spend twenty minutes a day on house cleaning. It’s best if you can set up a routine at the same time every day, but it is not necessary. Use a timer. Most cell phones have a timer on them that you can slip into your pocket, so you’ll be able to hear the alarm once your 20 minutes of housecleaning is up.

In that 20 minutes, here is a list of your tasks to accomplish every day:

Make the bed

Put away clothes from the night before & clear off dresser

Sweep the kitchen floor

Wipe inside of the kitchen sink and counter tops with a disinfecting cleaning wipe

Wipe inside of microwave with a disinfecting cleaning wipe

Clean out the inside of toilet with a cleaning brush that comes with a disposable head

Wipe the bathroom sink, toilet bowl, and inside of shower with a disinfecting cleaning wipe

Wipe the bathroom floor with a disinfecting cleaning wipe

Wipe the bathroom mirror with a window cleaning wipe

Pick up any random pieces of clutter lying around the home

Fluff pillows and cushions in the living room

Put bills and loose papers into desk filing system

Water the plants

Weekly cleaning (next section)

While you are in house cleaning mode, you’ll need to move as fast as you can. No taking phone calls. No checking email. Your pure focus needs to be house cleaning, as your goal is to complete everything listed above plus one weekly cleaning item. As you can see, that’s a lot of tasks to check off in twenty minutes. It is doable, but it gets easier with time, as your house will slowly be cleaner on a regular basis and take less time daily to keep up. However, I should add that you shouldn’t be very meticulous with your cleaning. This daily cleaning time is not the time to get on your hands and knees with a toothbrush and scrub the little nooks on the floor.

How to Clean Your Home Every WeekOnce you complete all of your daily house cleaning tasks, it is time to focus on your weekly home cleaning tasks. These tasks should all be completed within a week. Adding just one or two of these in with your daily tasks should keep your home clean.

Swiffer kitchen floor

Dust all hard surfaces

Wipe doorknobs with disinfecting cleaning wipes

Wipe mirrors with glass cleaning wipes

Sweep carpets

Change the sheets

Take out the garbage

Clean the aquarium/clean dog toys/etc.

Dishes & LaundryYou probably noticed that I did not mention doing dishes or laundry. That is because in order to keep your home clean, dishes should be washed as used. No dishes should be left sitting in the sink at any time, for any reason. If you wash dishes as you go, it will never feel like a project, and will be able to be completed in a matter of seconds. Laundry, on the other hand, depends on your living quarters. If you live in an apartment, you may need to go to a laundromat, as it would be ridiculous to go once a day. However, if you live in a home with your own washer/dryer, it may be less consuming for you to wash your clothes daily. With laundry, it will be best for you to use your own discretion, and determine what is the fastest, least time consuming way to get your laundry done. Another great idea for laundry, if your budget will allow, is to do the pay per pound laundry services. Some even pickup and deliver for as low as $1/lbs.

TipsRemember, the goal here is to have a clean/organized/guest ready home. If you do this every day, over time your home will get neater, and be even easier to maintain. Don’t be discouraged if the first few weeks you cannot even accomplish the daily list in 20 minutes. Just do what fits into that 20 minute time slot. Then, the next day, complete the rest of of the routine. Eventually, you may find yourself completing your daily and weekly tasks with time to spare. If that is the case, with the remaining time you have, work on a small part of a larger project such as purging old clothes, or cleaning out a junk drawer. This could even cut your spring cleaning time in half or eliminate it all together.

The only catch with this method is the size of your home. If you live in a home with more than three bedrooms and two bathrooms, give yourself an extra 5 minutes per every extra bedroom every day to accomplish your home cleaning tasks.

And, Finally...It is important to maintain your home daily so it does not become a mess overtime. If this happens, it will become more and more difficult to clean. It has been said before that a home is an extension of oneself. Even if you are not looking to have guests over, having a clean home will give you a sense of peace, and the strength to carry on with other goals in your life. Remember that having a clean and organized home is one of the first stepping blocks to the road of self improvement, no matter what your goals may be.